The South Korean technology giant is expected to launch the Galaxy A9 Pro in the first half of this year.

Samsung Electronics profit beats expectations as hopes rise for smartphone recovery. In Picture: Employees walk in the main office building of Samsung Electronics in Seoul, South Korea, January 6, 2016.Reuters File

Samsung Galaxy A9 Pro (SM-A9100), an upgraded version of the Galaxy A9 that was released in January this year, has been certified by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC), giving a clear hint that its release is not far off.

The South Korean technology giant is expected to launch the Galaxy A9 Pro in the first half of this year. It won't come as a surprise if the device is released as early as March or April, as it has been approved by two major telecommunication authorities.

However, the device has been spotted with a 5.5-inch display with 1,920x1,080 pixels, an octa-core CPU clocking 1.8GHz, Adreno 510 GPU, Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow operating system, 32GB internal memory, 4GB RAM, a 15MP main camera with auto-focus, face detection, flash, HDR photo and touch focus, and a 7MP front-snapper on GFXBench benchmark listing. It is also seen with features like fingerprint sensor, proximity, accelerometer, proximity, pedometer and light sensor.